Mr. Dennis Dupree, Sr.

Mr. Dennis J. Dupree Sr. was named Superintendent of Education for the Clarksdale Municipal School District (CMSD) on April 16, 2007. He is currently serving his 11th year at the helm of CMSD.

Mr. Dupree is a native of Jackson, Mississippi and is a graduate of Lanier High School. He attended Jackson State University on an athletic scholarship and was one of the co-captains for the Jackson State University (JSU) Football Team during his senior year. He earned his Bachelor’s degree from JSU in 1981 and embarked on a career in public education in his home state. He earned his Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Mississippi State University. He has also done additional study at the University of Mississippi.

Mr. Dupree has spent over three decades years working to improve the lives of children in his home state and working to improve public schools in each community his career path has taken him. He worked as a teacher and coach in the Oxford Public School District where he spent 11 years, in the Columbus Municipal School District as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, principal, assistant superintendent, and interim superintendent where he spent 15 years, and now in Clarksdale in his current position.

Throughout his career Mr. Dupree has had a number of milestone events. In Oxford, he was named the first Black Head Football Coach while still in his 20’s and received many awards for his service to students and the community. He also coached track in Oxford alongside his wife. He was chosen Administrator of the Year for Columbus in 2000 and Alumnus of the Year for Lanier High School in 2007. In April 2014, he was named a “Leader to Learn From” by Education Week magazine. Mr. Dupree values education and believes in the power it has to change lives. He is no stranger to hard work and difficult tasks. Most of all Mr. Dupree believes that a caring adult can make all the difference in the life of a child.

Mr. Dupree is the youngest of five children. He was reared in a single parent home so he does not subscribe to the belief that children from single parent homes cannot excel if given the right tools and instruction. His upbringing has helped to shape his professional philosophy about education. He believes that high expectations, the help and guidance of talented teachers and the love and involvement of a caring family can be difference makers! He further believes that where you come should place no limitations on where you will go in life and how much you can achieve.

Mr. Dupree is a proud member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated and is also a member of Chapel Hill Baptist Church in Clarksdale MS. Mr. Dupree is the son of the late Edna Johnson. He is married to the former Shelia Sanders. He and his wife are the parents of two adult children, Dennis Jr. and Jasmine, and the grandparents of three grandsons, Jonathan, and Vincent II, and Connor.

All material on this website, unless otherwise noted, is the intellectual property of Clarksdale Municipal School District . No material may be copied or used without the express written permission of CMSD.

All material on this website, unless otherwise noted, is the intellectual property of Clarksdale Municipal School District . No material may be copied or used without the express written permission of CMSD.